//------------------------------// // Darkness Reigns // Story: What If? - Equestrian Avengers: Shattered Dimensions // by Maximus_Reborn //------------------------------// Chapter Eleven “Darkness Reigns” A portal spiraled into existence before Peter leapt from within, landing upright gracefully along the edge of the roof of a castle. It stood perched over a cliff, hanging above a sea of rushing water and jagged rocks. The moon shone brightly in the night sky, and strong winds brushed through the vicinity. Freeing the dust from his shoulder, the stallion nodded. “Okay. Two fragments left, and we can go after Starlight.” Honing his sixth sense, Peter narrowed his gaze on nothing in particular, but his eyes widened at something unusual. “That’s weird. It feels like the fragment is… closing in on me?” Faster than Peter could react, a dark being soared through the air at breakneck speed and drove their shoulder into his chest. The force of the blow sent the stallion flying into the nearest wall with a flat thud, sending a small tremor through the building. Peter lamely skidded to the ground before pulling himself to a sitting position, holding a hoof over his aching cranium. “Nope. I was right. Well, at least I found it,” Peter grumbled, peeking up at his attacker. The being stared down at the smaller equine with a fanged grin. Their horn glowed momentarily, causing particles of magical energy to materialize around Peter’s neck before they lifted his form from the ground. The stallion clutched at the makeshift noose, holding his gaze on the dark alicorn holding him captive. Soon, he recognized the individual’s sky-blue, slitted gaze, black fur, and sparkling ethereal mane. She edged the stallion’s hanging frame closer until their faces were only scant inches apart from each others’, sharing a menacing smirk with her immobilized captive. “Oh, great. Nightmare Moon,” Peter groaned, pulling at the energies around his neck. “Lady Luck is not my friend today.” Nightmare chuckled under her breath. “Don’t fade on me yet. I have plans for you.” Blinking, Peter arched a brow. “Plans? It seems like you were waiting for me. I don’t think we’ve ever met.” Feigning shock, the stallion’s eyes widened as he gasped in an exaggerated manner. “Have you been stalking me? I mean, you are hot and all, but I’m happily married with a girl just as tall as you. Though you’re doing a good job of tickling my fancy.” Shrugging dismissively, Peter blankly stared at the mare. “Besides, it wouldn’t work out between us. I have this thing against girls that work for the dark side.” “Make your jokes all you want. I’m aware of your history,” the mare sternly stated, licking her lips seductively. “You have quite the dark side yourself. You’d make an excellent host.” Peter shook his head. “Newsflash, N&M. You’re not my first Nightmare, or second, or third. Besides. I already have a partner, and you can never replace my friend.” Nightmare’s grin widened, showing fanged teeth. “Don’t be so boring.” The mare’s horn sparked, causing the fragment to materialize next to her head in a flash. “This Nightmare has something your Nightmare never had.” “The fragment?!” Peter blurted out, eyeing the glowing stone. The alicorn nodded. “Yes! With its power, your body, and my abilities, we will tear this world apart!” She paused, narrowing her gaze on the stallion. “Join me. Together, nothing can stop us.” Peter blinked a response. “I’m confused. Aren’t you already using Princess Luna as a host body? What do you need me for?” “Your body and mind are fully compatible with the energies I exude. With your strength and magical power, I can be far stronger than I can in this body,” Nightmare declared, frowning. “So, I ask you once more. Will you join me willingly?” Scoffing harshly, Peter rolled his eyes. “If you know so much about me, you should already have an idea of what my answer is.” Nightmare growled under her breath, levitating the stallion’s form over the edge of the cliff. “That’s fine. I’ll just have to take your body!” The mare cackled wickedly as she relinquished her magical hold, dropping Peter. “Have a nice flight!” Yielding to the effects of gravity, Peter watched Nightmare stand on her perch before he turned to face the ground. The stallion sped into a free-fall, narrowly avoiding the rocks along the side of the cliff. Nightmare dove after the stallion, unleashing a series of bolts from above. Peter’s sixth sense blared, prompting him to spin or twist out of the path of each beam as he fell. Once Nightmare was within yards of the stallion, Peter shot out a strand onto the mare’s chestplate and yanked her towards him. Spinning in place, the stallion delivered a stiff kick to the back of the alicorn’s head. Dazed momentarily, Nightmare plummeted to the waiting waters below while Peter managed to whip a strand of webbing to an elevated position. The stallion’s momentum ceased once the thread stretched to its limit, and he bungeed skywards, soaring before landing on solid ground at the foot of the castle. Suddenly, dark energies erupted from below his position, and thunder rumbled through the skies as lightning crackled across the clouds. Peter looked back, diving into the nearest opened window of the castle, and he caught sight of a thestral as it steadily turned in his direction. Nightmare took back to the skies, hovering in place. Her silhouette beamed through the moon’s light, and the mare shifted her gaze about diligently, attempting to locate the stallion. After failing to do so, Nightmare grinned madly. “Hide all you like, I will find you! I have eyes and ears all over this castle!” The mare’s eyes glowed momentarily. “Before long, you will be mine!” The alicorn’s wings flapped, lifting and guiding her frame to the top of the castle. Meanwhile, Peter watched the sight from within the castle walls, concealed behind the window. He dropped the unconscious thestral, who now possessed a large knot over the head, gently down by his side, and he never averted his sight from the outside. Once certain the mare was out of sight, the stallion let out a relieved sigh before sliding down to a sitting position with his back against the wall. “This is exactly how I pictured my day would be going,” Peter muttered sarcastically, rubbing a hoof over his eyes. “Good news is I know where the fragment is. Bad news is that it’s Nightmare Moon holding it. To make matters worse, she wants to possess me. The fact that she was waiting for me is disturbing. How could she have known I was coming?” Blinking, the stallion’s eyes widened at a realization. “Wait a second. She knew who I was, where I came from, and my personal history regarding another Nightmare. That means Dream is here!” “It stands to reason that Dream was captured when she came to this world,” Julia’s voice coolly interjected in the confines of the stallion’s mind. “If Nightmare is already in possession of Luna, she would have easily sensed Dream’s presence. Considering how different their ideals are, it stands to reason that there might have been a disagreement between them.” Tapping a hoof against his hoof, Peter’s brow furrowed. “Is that a guess, or did you read her mind?” Julia cleared her throat. “A logical and educated guess.” Peter closed his eyes and exhaled. “Either way, I won’t be able to fight Nightmare Moon on my own. Luna killed me when she had the Venom symbiote. With the Nightmare Force, I imagine the end result would be same. Unless my friends have the Dragonballs handy, I’d rather not die again.” The stallion pursed his lips, frowning. “If Dream is here, I have to find her. I’ll be able to make a stand against Nightmare afterward.” Peter stood upright on his hind legs, nodding. “Plus, I miss her. We have the great dynamic of funny guy and straightman going. Then again, some would say I already have that same chemistry with my wife. Trixie, too. Plus, Luna hardly smiles. The more I think about it, I can add Umbra, Ember, and Laura to that list. Oh, and Julia can’t be missed.” “All the more reason you need to find her as soon as possible,” Julia hastily declared, ending the stallion’s ramble prematurely. “She must be somewhere close. Perhaps you can acquire some information? It’s only a matter of time before Nightmare locates you. Interrogating one of Nightmare’s subordinates is the fastest route to locating your partner.” Taken aback, Peter arched a brow. “What am I? Batman? That’s not really my thing.” Pausing, the stallion shifted his gaze skyward as Nightmare’s wild cackling echoed through the castle’s walls. Letting out a defeated sigh, Peter shrugged sheepishly. “I guess now’s as good a time as any to experiment.” After a brief duration, a thestral patrolled the hallways. Just before it could react upon seeing its unconscious cohort, two strands of webbing collided onto their being, cocooning limbs together while covering the mouth. Peter yanked the thestral to his side, nodding. “Mind if we have a quick chat outside? I hear the view is lovely under a starlit evernight.” The stallion led the thestral outside, dragging her across the ground by a strand. “Look. I don’t have anything personal against you,” he muttered, rolling his eyes. Once at the edge of the cliff, Peter lifted the pony from the ground and held them by the collar.  “Let’s be friends, okay? I just want a little information about a friend of mine. She’s really cute, but a bit blunt. Just think Nightmare without the tyrannical attitude.” “I have nothing to say to you!” the thestral spat, sharpening her yellow gaze into a glare. “I will never betray our lady! She will destroy all traitors to her name! She warned us about you, Spider!” Peter edged closer to the mare, darkly growling under his breath. “What makes you so sure I won’t?” Pausing, the stallion held his hooves over his head before lowering into a hunched stance. “Your master may have briefed you about me, but you don’t know the extent of my power.” He crawled along the ground, scaling the wall before hissing. “The spiders.” The thestral blinked, stammering. “Uh... what?” The stallion flipped back to the earth mere hoof-lengths away from the ensnared thestral, rubbing his hooves through the grass strangely. “I’m summoning the spiders!” “What are you…?” the mare trailed off, skeptical of what was transpiring. Peter raised a hoof objectively, continuing to wave the other about in an unusual manner. “I am the Great Spider, and you’re making me mad. I’m summoning the spiders. They will come to my call.” The stallion’s voice was gravelly, resembling the sound of glass scratching against a rough surface. He brushed a hoof through the thestral’s mane, trailing a tongue against his own lip. The color in his irises darkened. “Hundreds of them. Thousands. And all of them hungry and at my command.” The thestral’s complexion paled as Peter edged his face closer to hers, holding an unreadable expression. A long silence filled the air before the stallion cackled wildly. “Because I am the Great Spider!” Letting out a high-pitched shriek, the mare slammed her eyes shut and wiggled in place. “Okay, I give! Lady Nightmare has imprisoned the imposter in a sacred gem! It’s located within the throne room!” The stallion was slow to respond, bearing his teeth, but he straightened his posture, patting the mare over the top of the head. “You shall be spared.” Gently lifting the thestral over his shoulder, Peter quietly made his way to the basement where the previously unconscious guard still laid. Just as the mare readied to scream, the stallion shot a wad of webbing over her mouth. She glared intently at him, releasing muffled screams before Peter closed the door to the room. Brushing his hooves off, Peter nodded and shifted his gaze skyward. “All right. Let’s head to the throne room.” -u- Deep within the reaches of the throne room, Peter crawled in from the highest window and remained on the ceiling. The room itself was empty, but clamoring could be heard vividly outside. More than likely, Nightmare had alerted the guards of his presence, and everypony was searching adamantly for him. Knowing time wasn’t on his side, Peter swiftly yet quietly descended from the ceiling while hanging onto a strand of webbing upside down. He shifted his gaze about before settling it on the pink gem perched above the large stone chair on the other side of the room. A dark mist spiraled at the center of the gem, causing its surface to glow momentarily. Peter flipped from his strand and landed in an upright stance. Without hesitating, the stallion raced towards the gem, but once he was mere hoof-lengths away from it, a beam soared across the room, slamming into his chest. The force of the blow knocked Peter back into a violent roll until he crashed back-first into a wall. Exhaling, the stallion stared blankly at the ground before lifting his gaze to find the alicorn standing over him. “I really need to stop getting my hopes up whenever things look easy. Fate is always there to slap me in face and bring me back down to reality.” “Did you really think I didn’t know what you were planning? How pathetic,” Nightmare huffed, holding a bemused glare. She turned her back to the stallion, facing the gem. “Dream. That’s what she calls herself? The fact that she somehow allowed herself to be manipulated is beyond me, but I can reform her with time and remind her of our purpose.” Frowning, the alicorn narrowed her gaze on the stallion. “As for you, I see that if I am to claim you, it’ll have to be with force.” Her horn glowed momentarily, causing a bright aura to envelope the stallion. Nightmare growled under her breath as she lifted Peter from the ground via telekinesis. “You brought this pain upon yourself.” She sharply turned her head to the side, violently tossing Peter across the room until he crashed into another wall. She repeated this action, lifting and tossing the stallion about, and the stone walls were steadily giving away, evident by the spreading cracks in their structure. Relinquishing her hold, Peter limply fell to the ground in a dazed state before he crawled across the ground, groaning. Nightmare stepped to the side, eyeing the prone stallion with a furrowed brow while particles of energy from the atmosphere channeled into her horn. “This pain can stop at a moment’s notice,” Nightmare whispered, straightening her posture. “Just give in to the darkness of your heart and acknowledge me as your God.” Peter managed a weak chuckle, shaking the cobwebs from his head. “Sorry, but what’s a God to a nonbeliever?” Nightmare’s brow twitched at the comment before she bore her fangs. Howling at the top of her lungs, the alicorn lowered her head and unleashed a massive wave of pure dark energy at the stallion. Peter’s sixth sense came to life quite suddenly with a clear warning of inbound danger, slowing the flow of time in the world around him as the beam approached. Its trajectory was straight and wide, leaving no room to maneuver. Glancing to the side, he caught sight of the gem holding his friend prisoner. Peter shot a strand across the room, latching it onto the jewel, and he yanked it to his position, managing to catch it. Swiftly facing the wave as it was inches away, the stallion held out the gem in the face of the attack. The force of the blow staggered him, causing his legs to buckle, but Peter held his ground, holding the jewel firm. The wave pressed on, cracking the gem’s surface until it eventually shattered. The wave immediately engulfed the stallion, causing his form to disappear in the onrushing maelstrom of energies. Suddenly, an explosion detonated at the center of the wave, triggering a shockwave potent enough to shatter the surrounding walls. Each shard of stone fell from the tower, and a dust cloud spread from the point of impact. Nightmare stood firm, staring at the source of the explosion with a furrowed brow. However, her eyes widened once the dust cleared, revealing the stallion’s form still intact. Suddenly, his gaze emitted a bright blue light, burning through the smog. A firm gust rushed out from under his body, chasing away the surrounding dust. Gone was his hazel gaze, replaced by blue slitted irises. A bubble shield illuminated around his otherwise unharmed form before Peter’s horn sparked, prompting his black and white costume to materialize over his body. Within the confines of his mind, Dream took form. She held out her hand, letting out a relieved sigh. “It feels so good to be back.” Peter’s image morphed into sight next to the entity as he placed a hand over her shoulder, nodding. “I wish we could savor the moment, Dream, but we have a bit of a problem to take care of first.” “Indeed. We’ll revel in our reunion afterward,” Dream affirmed, placing her hand over the young man’s own. Meanwhile, back in the real world, Peter lifted his glowing gaze until he met Nightmare’s. “Kindness isn’t a weakness, Nightmare. Dream and I found a power in the bond we share that you could only imagine. It isn’t because we control each other. It’s because we trust each other.” Nightmare scoffed harshly. “Is that a fact? Then show me this power!” Her horn emitted magical energies before a silver-blue armor materialized into existence over her body, revealing only her wings, ears, eyes, mouth, and horn. Suddenly, a scythe morphed behind the alicorn’s position, her energy glowing around its long handle. A cyan gem shone at the weapon’s tip, and the dark blue blade itself was shaped like a crescent moon, reminiscent to the mark on her flank and facemask. Thunder rumbled in the skies while lightning crackled across the clouds. The alicorn narrowed her gaze on the stallion, straightening her posture. “I shall show you the depths of the abilities I possess!” Nightmare vanished from sight in a flash of light, materializing into existence directly behind the stallion with her scythe reared back. A blaring alarm echoed throughout his cranium, prompting him to sway his body to the side out of harm’s way as the mare swung her weapon. Even from her distance, the stone wall across from the path of her weapon fell in two pieces, sliced cleanly in half. Nightmare leapt back, slashing wildly at her foe, but Peter swayed in response to each attack, flipping high into the air backwards. Once he landed, Nightmare dashed forward until she was hoof-lengths away, and she cackled wildly before swinging the point of the scythe down with malicious intent, aiming to cleave the stallion in two from the middle. Peter slammed his hooves together, stopping the weapon just a mere inch from his face. The pair stood, straining as each attempted to gain the advantage. Beads of sweat fell from Peter’s forehead before he swung his hooves to the side, managing to shift Nightmare’s momentum, and the point of the alicorn’s scythe embedded into the ground. Faster than she could react, the stallion drove his shoulder into her chest, driving her back, and he raised his legs, slamming it down in the form of an axe-kick over the handle of the weapon. The reinforced wood gave way and shattered, with two pieces of the handle flying in separate directions. Nightmare staggered back, unleashing a volley of magical beams, but Peter performed a series of backflips, avoiding each projectile before leaping high into the air. Once the stallion landed in a perched stance on top of a pillar, the alicorn shot out a beam onto the column at her enemy’s hooves. Peter hopped over the projectile as it detonated upon colliding into the marble, triggering a small explosion of fire and magical energy. The world slowed around the stallion as he soared through the air, eyeing the large chunk of stone that fell from the blast. Shooting a strand of webbing onto the broken column, Peter spun in midair while never relinquishing his hold until his image resembled a twirling propeller blade. Releasing his thread, the stallion launched the large stone at breakneck speed. Nightmare’s horn glowed, causing a magical barrier to erupt into existence around her position as it neared. However, the world slowed once more as Peter vanished in a flash, reappearing inches away from the shield. He punched the barrier repeatedly with speed matching that of a gatling gun, each blow harder than the last, and tremors coursed through the castle’s walls until a crack surfaced in the defense. Suddenly, the stallion faded instantly in a burst of light. Time seemingly resumed before the stone slammed into the barrier, shattering the defense, and the column collided into the ground mere inches away from Nightmare, with the force of the blow sending the alicorn flying back through the nearest wall. Bursting from underneath the pile of rubble, violent bright energies rushed from the mare’s body as she took flight. She rushed into the stallion faster than he could react, grabbing him by the collar before flying straight up. The pair soared past the clouds, eventually reaching the stratosphere. Peter shifted his weight, managing to halt their flight, and they fell into a rapid descent, racing back towards the earth at near-terminal velocity. Nightmare snarled, holding both hooves over the stallion’s neck as electrical currents sparked from her horn. Once she lowered her head to unleash a bolt, Peter rolled to the side, and the beam narrowly missed his head by the tiniest of margins, evident by traces of scorched mane. Firing multiple strands of webbing over the appendage on her head, the stallion lifted himself to a mounted position with a hoof reared back. Nightmare snarled as energies channeled into her horn, but the magic quickly dissipated, causing the alicorn’s eyes to widen. Peter delivered a series of stiff punches to her jaw repeatedly, ending his attack with a straight hoof to the chest. The force of the blow sent Nightmare flying back, but the stallion halted her progress when he latched a strand of webbing to her chestplate, yanking her back to him. For Peter, the world slowed once more as he held his hooves out to the side. Particles of magical energy from the atmosphere spiraled over his limbs before morphing, taking physical shape into a pair of gauntlets. Twilight Arms II’s light illuminated in the surrounding darkness, acting as a pair of beacons. Peter and Dream roared together in unison as the stallion lunged forward, thrusting a hoof into Nightmare’s chest with all of his might. A shockwave erupted at the point of impact, and the blow matched the roar of thunder, rumbling across the skies of Equestria. The armor surrounding Nightmare’s chest shattered into multiple pieces, spreading in many directions, and the fragment spun from her being, levitating towards the stallion. That same moment, just as Peter grabbed the missing piece of the tablet, the force of the blow launched Nightmare with the force of a missile straight down through the castle from above. The very foundation of the stone building ruptured as the earth split, shooting skyward. Multiple thestrals screamed at the chaos, flying from the castle as it collapsed into the sinking earth. Violent tremors shook the land asunder while a crater spread. Strangely, only darkness waited as Nightmare plummeted. The alicorn could only fall unconsciously, her image fading in the abyss as shards of stone and remnants from her once great castle followed. Meanwhile, Peter continued to plummet via free-fall with the fragment in his possession. “One more to go,” he muttered, spinning several times in midair before landing gracefully the side of one of the collapsing walls. The blue faded from his eyes, allowing his hazel gaze to resurface as he leapt to the ground. Once stationary, the stallion held a confident smirk. “I missed you, Dream! I almost completed this entire adventure without you! Julia’s just about sick of my company.” In the confines of the stallion’s mind, Dream folded her arms. “I am grateful that you came to my aid. It’s almost sickening having to listen to an egomaniacal version of myself for many days.” She inhaled deeply before sighing. “It was lonely, admittedly. I miss the warmth you constantly provide.” Feeling the temperature in her face elevate, the entity cleared her throat and glanced to the side. “Although... I can deal without your puns on occasion. I can hardly imagine the troubles you’ve stumbled into without my guidance.” “You have no idea,” Peter grinned. “We’ll  have plenty of time to catch up after all of this is said and done. I have one more piece of the fragment to find before we can pull the team back together.” Sobering, the stallion narrowed his gaze on the portal in the distance and nodded. “You’ll have to sit tight for a bit. I can’t bring you back with me just yet. Is there a way you can stay out of sight and hang on to the fragment until then?” “All things considered, I believe that I can manage,” Dream calmly retorted, folding her arms. “When the portal opened here originally, Nightmare was close by, and that led to my immediate capture. With you defeating her, she’ll be focused on recovering before attempting to relocate me. I can stay under the radar while using a thestral as a host in the meantime.” Peter hummed, holding a hoof over his mouth. His eyes widened as a smile surfaced on his face. “I think I have the perfect candidate in mind.” The stallion made his way to the cellar, finding the thestral he interrogated earlier still there. “Hi! It’s me again!” Her eyes shot open at the sight of the Spider, and she wiggled feverishly, attempting to break free from the webbing binding her limbs together. “Stay away from me! I don’t want the spiders all over me!” Dream opened her mouth, ready to question, but she simply shrugged, exhaling. “Never mind. I don’t want to know. She’ll do just fine.” Suddenly, the dark energies rushed out of Peter’s body, spiraling into that of the thestral’s. She lowered to a kneeling stance, shaking her head before standing upright. The yellow in her eyes faded, allowing a bright blue slitted gaze to take its place. She held out a hoof inches away from her face, huffing. “This one’s will is surprisingly weak. It will be of no issue to maintain control for as long as I need to.” Peter retrieved the fragment, offering it to the mare. “Okay. Hang on to this, Dream, and stay out of sight. I’ll be back for you.” “Understood,” Dream whispered, accepting the item. The pair shared a nod before the stallion rushed into the distance, making his way to the nearest portal. Inhaling deeply before sighing, Dream nodded while smiling. “I look forward to our more permanent reunion, Peter. The universe has come to be a lonely place without you.” To be continued...